Why can't I learn to open up to people?

Opening up to someone is a hard thing to do. It's always a good idea to start small. Tell a family member about your day and how certain things made you feel. This way you start to get comfortable with talking about small things and learn to open up about things that worry you

Opening up to people is sometimes a daunting task. It can be even more challenging when you’ve received negativity in exchange for doing so. Finding someone in your life who has a good sense of boundaries and self-awareness can be useful when you’re looking to reach out. You may wonder what boundaries look like. As people, we can only take so much on our plate. It may be overwhelming for you to spill out your whole life story to someone you barely know. During quiet moments in your life (ex. riding in the car with your guardian, hanging out in the park with a close friend), share a bite-sized chunk of what’s on your mind. You’ll find your connection with that person strengthen even more and you’ll get helpful support too. This can be even more effective if you both make sure you’re ready for a heart-to-heart talk.

It is a very hard thing to do. It can be because you have had a bad experience or that you find it hard. Doing it in small steps can help. Maybe either speaking to a listener here and then finding the courage to talk to someone you know and open up about things.

Just writing this is hard, as a person who has grown up in a large family, I was often told that I was the "rock", and that I was great for emotional support that I never cried. What people do not realise is that they were reinforcing this behaviour, making it a positive trait when one should really be comfortable to ask for help. Opening up is harder to do as you get older, because people who struggle are often taught at a young age that they should not; some people learn this in their teen years when they try to open up to somebody only to have their trust be betrayed. To answer; you can open up to people, you're just struggling to learn. You have probably suffered in a situation where you have tried to do so, but experienced something negative, or you have been taught from an early age to keep your emotions and your life to yourself. Now imagine for a moment - If you were sat next to your 10 year old self, what would you sat to them now?

It's hard. Sometimes we feel like the other person won't care or can't provide the support we need. Or sometimes we're just scared to. But it's okay.

Maybe because of fear of being judged, misunderstood, taken advantage of.. many things can be the case really

Apps like 7 cups are extremely helpful with that stuff. Talk to your listener! And I’m sure you’ll get it figured out.

Some are shy and some doesn't trust. I'm a person with trust issue. Opening up to people is hard. Some needs to earn it, you opening up to them. You just need to accept yourself and them, and you will open up to people.

There could be many reasons behind not open up yourself in front of others. It could be because of fear of being judged and then people will start disliking you and end up losing those people. It could because of inferiority complex disorder in which person think that his idea of seeing world will might not impress others and they will not talk to him again. It could be because they are not good at expressing their emotions. It could be that they are introverts and they don't like to talk much. Some people think they know they're right and feel like not sharing their own ideas.

I cannot open up to certain people because of my trust issues. I have been betrayed and deceived by people who were pretending to be someone they are not. My terrible experience has affected my judgment of where I shall lay my trust. I guess it is one of the reasons I cannot open up. Another reason why I think so is because of some traumatic experience in childhood or past. It inevitably causes other mental health issues. Insecurities also play a major role here, The fear of what people or the society may think of can also contribute as factors.

It might be because of your previous experiences or maybe you just don't feel comfortable opening up to others anyway. That's fine. ❤️ You don't have to open up to people as soon as you meet them. And I understand that you feel like you can't open up. Though do you feel like maybe you're closer to some people than others like family or friends? Have you ever opened up to them before? You can also start to open up about something that you feel least uncomfortable about, and something that you might think the other(s) might have in common with you. Even if they haven't said anything about it before, maybe by you saying it, they can open up about how they feel and their opinions about that topic too.

You can learn to open up to people. Sometimes it takes time and that's okay. To open up to people it's good to start with someone you truly trust. Or even opening up to yourself first. Journaling is a great way that helped me learn to be honest with myself. Many people struggle with not opening up to people, and it can be hard to start. Feeling stuck is normal. You are not alone on this journey. Your feelings are valid. People are there to support you, and help you on your journey to being more open with yourself and others. We believe in you.

For some it can be hard to open up. Anything from past experiences to the fear of not knowing can cause this. If you have opened up before and had a negative experience this can make you not want to open up again. Trusting someone with personal information is very difficult for a lot of people. This doesn't mean something is wrong with you it just means that you're going to have to work on this. It will take time to get comfortable enough to open up to someone and you also have to find the right person for you.

Maybe you're just shy or you are not good with socializing or maybe you don't trust anyone with your feelings which is completely normal. You should try to start with normal conversations and elaborate only if you're comfortable. Or else if you really need to vent, you could maintain a journal or you could record yourself, listen and come to a conclusion. After all who can get you like you. There are also another options you could try, like listening to songs which feel like your current mood. Because trust me listening to that one same lyric and saying "mood" is a whole ass mood and a mood lighter.

Opening up to people can be extremely challenging and takes time and trust, especially if you have had previous negative experiences when opening up to people. Although not being able to open up to people may be frustrating, you should never feel pressured into it or feel shame for not being able to. You should share what you feel comfortable with and with who you feel comfortable with, which may be a friend or a listener here on 7 cups. Just remember you should never feel shame about opening up and with time and practice it will get easier.

Opening up to people may feel like hard word. Expressing what's going through your mind and feeling exposed, may be difficult at first but once you've overcome it, you'll probably realize that's OK to speak your mind, and that probably you're not alone on the road. There's nothing to fear, when you're being yourself, regardless of everyone else's opinion; who you are is what makes you special (even when it doesn't feel that way). Opening up to someone you trust, might be a little easier, the important thing, (specially if there's some struggle) is to look for support when you need it. Remember, you're not alone :)

It’s by practice. One day I was like you, I wasn’t able to open up to people, I felt shy and I didn’t feel I trust them enough to talk to them. Although that was how I feel but I was dreaming of having friends and people who I can open up to and I was dreaming of having close friends who I can enjoy time with. Now, I am much better because I forced myself the first few times to talk out loud, to say what is in my mind, to not be afraid of rejection, to show my own personality that I am confident about as long as I am not hurting anyone or abusing them. It’s all about you, practice and go out of this fear because you are stronger than it. Good luck

Opening up to people can be difficult, especially if you have just realized that you struggle with being open. For me, I have always been a reserved person that generally doesn't open up about my inner feelings, not even to my best friends. I realized that I have a hard time opening up to people when I met my now significant other, as he, when we were only friends, really helped me speak more openly as a person. Admittedly, it was a struggle to be open with him at first, but after we got even closer, I've found it much easier. What I learned from that experience was that it's alright to take a while to figure out how to be open, as it takes time. Maybe as you grow closer to others, whether they're friends or family members, you may find that it becomes natural to be more open.

Because it’s challenging to be vulnerable! We don’t live in a society that normalizes the honest expression of human emotion and that can be frustrating and isolating. Just try to remember that we’re all human at the end of the day and we’re all made out of the same stuff. It can be scary to open up to somebody when you don’t know if they will be receptive or understanding. But just try to keep in mind that even if that does happen (and I hope it doesn’t!) there are plenty of other in the world who will be more on your wavelength. I’m always here if you feel like talking to me about anything, this is a judgment free space. It’s safe to share here. But no pressure! Everything at your own pace.

Being in a new space is scary because it feels foreign and uncomfortable, and I used to be afraid, but being the person you are and putting yourself out there, introducing yourself and interacting is more than enough. Sometimes the feeling of being judged holds you back but deep down, we are all human and no one is perfect. Not everyone will like us but some do. The person you are afraid to talk to might feel the same way, afraid to open up. Sometimes, just saying simple words can make someone’s day, it’s the wonder of embracing fears.

Did you ever try opening up and it may somehow failed? Someone who by his or her words made you close up even more? It might be really hard to open up sometimes because you might never know if this person you're opening up to is trust worthy, would actually accept your feelings without judging you and would actually listen sincerely without getting bored or giving you advice or turning the story to make it about themselves and their experiences. You probably want someone who will understand you and give you space and time to open up, you are scared and that's totally fine. Maybe even confused on why you find it so hard and you're being hard on yourself right now, feeling that something is wrong with you, but there isn't anything at all, trust me. I've been there, you're not alone

Learning to open up to people is a hard thing to do and many people struggle with it. This may be because you have some trust issues or have a fear of being vulnerable. By opening up you are letting people into the private parts of your life that many other people don't get to see. When opening up these people see your weaknesses and fears that may subconsciously be causing you to believe they will use these against you. This can make you have your guard up constantly which can make it difficult to open up to people.

During your childhood, perhaps there were moments where you opened up, but got hurt. Perhaps when you opened up, your parents yelled at you, or your peers made fun of you. So your mind has 'learnt' that "Hmm, if I open up, I will experience pain. Opening up is dangerous. Therefore, I will make sure this person (you) are afraid to open up to protect them from being hurt." Perhaps it's not that you can't learnt to open up to people - perhaps it is harder to open up. You are probably able to overcome your fear of opening up by revealing more surface-level parts of yourself (e.g. your hobbies) to certain people. Once your mind 'relearns' that opening up to others is not as dangerous as it thinks, you can start revealing deeper aspects of yourself. It will be scary to start opening up, even a little, but the best and only way to overcome this fear is to face your fears directly.

Maybe we have grown up feeling all insecure and never learned how to connect with people. Maybe we never learned to love ourselves but to criticize. Maybe we remain so vigilant about every tiny bit of the self that we forget all the skills of socializing while making a connection with other people. We are so scared to get hurt that we find it easier to keep everything inside us. Somehow we have learned that it's better not to be us than to get hurt after they refuse us or leave us. Maybe we find it safer to stay distant than to get hurt while at the same time we are longing for being able to make a connection to another human being. Whoever is living on this knife-edge, I want them to know that they are not alone. That we are trying our best right now. Love.

It is always hard to open up to people especially when you are the type to be a listener, rather than the talker. Opening up to people may take time to getting used to saying what has been bothering you or what’s on your mind. Learn how to go by your own pace on talking to others wether it be to someone you know, or someone here from 7 cups. You are the one who knows what your limits are and how to explain what you are feeling, and we are here to provide the support you may want.

I think it is very hard to open up to people especially if you have gone through something in the past that caused you to feel this way. If you have opened up to someone in the past and they broke your trust, or they took your opening up the wrong way, it is definitely very easy to feel this way. There are also a lot of societal standards that contribute to this because if you open up and be vulnerable, it almost creates a space for people to use that as your weakness and it can turn around to you. Just remember that, there are people out there that love you and support you, and even though you might not have that in your life at this specific moment, you will.

You are always able to learn new skills! Learning to open up to people is just like learning how to ride a bike. It is something that some people learn at a young age, but it is also something that some people may choose not to learn although it is a useful skill. Being an open book does not come easy to everyone, but understanding your own feelings is the first step. Once you know how you are feeling and even possibly why you are feeling that way, it will become easier to share those feelings with other people. The biggest thing to remember is that no matter what you are feeling, there is always someone out there who is willing to listen to you and that has maybe even been there themselves.

Ah, this is a poignant question. I am currently very much in the throes of trying to open myself up to others after coming to the realisation that despite being close to my family and friends, I am completely unable to tell them when something has negatively affected me unless it is debilitating enough that I have no other choice. I was made aware of this when, after having been struggling with depression for years, I made an offhand comment about liking sad music to which my mother responded with puzzlement: "You feel sad? When?". I felt that to bring up that I wasn't feeling well in conversation would make me a 'downer', and I just never knew when the right time to say something was. I just didn't want to be a burden. But I have realised that in doing so, I was just pushing people away. I was neglecting the people I care about of vital parts of myself, and if you aren't feeling well then it is never a burden to a friend (or listener) to help, or at least listen. I want to be better at this communication, and finally worked up to asking for therapy, where you have no choice but to talk and open up. Practice in sharing these intimate parts of ourselves is the only way we can become more comfortable with sharing.

Opening up to people is definitely not easy! When you open up to someone, you’ve to let your guard down, be vulnerable, and allow the other person to know more about you. Perhaps you’re uncomfortable with this, you could open up with things you’re comfortable with first. It doesn’t have to be something major that makes you uncomfortable! :-) it also has to depends on why you’re unable to open up to people - could it be because you don’t trust this person enough? I think it’s important to find your reason and look out for patterns! All the best :-)

Perhaps this is because it is not something your parents/guardians encouraged growing up. But it is never too late to develop and grow. It takes some self-discovery to understand why we do what we do, but it is an important process in getting to know ourselves and develop past our limitations. Sometimes our wrong beliefs and negative self image about ourselves can limit us opening up to people. Change the way you see yourself. See a therapist if necessary. If you are a Christian spend time in the Word and ask see what God says about you - you are fearfully and wonderfully made etc. And then make the effort to step out of your comfort zones when it comes to opening up to people - this would apply to people that you can trust. You will see a change in time and will be glad you made the effort.